The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1887-09-30


he list wasted an wasted away, an one
mornin', fore any one 1now'd it sea 'cely,
he turped his fare do the wall an slipped
over tine river.
AN that's the way tlsecl' boys turned
mp their toes, sonny, one after another,
ez long ez it were with w lie foolin' 'roun'
in the woods after chance. I'm afeerd
I've lost my chance o. follDwin' their ex-
ample, for tn hain't a painter nor a sign
o one within a fhousan' miles o. here,
an 1T don't seem 90 be no trick Mt all to
settle with a bar nowadays. If my oil
gun don't bust, or tree don't fall an
SQUASH me, or q scattering shot in the
woods don't wing me, or / don't fall
overheard in the pond an git drowned,
I'm feerd, sonny, fh't Ill lief to peg out
in bed, an th't the boys ez died game III
kinder feel ashamed o. me wen Gabriel
gives the bugle CALI an jine 'em on
t'other side o. Jurdan-
'-But this here Burnt Chestnut run
'way--oourse yew heerd thecurious story
ez to how it got its name? Didn't never
hear it? Wall, i swow! That's curiouser
yet thin the story, an bein's ye haven't
got nuthin' better to listen to jest now thin
them sassy red squirrels ez is chucklin'
at us from ev'ry durn tree that's got
hole in it an them wuthless jaybirds th't
sings ez if they was film saw an the
tappin' o. that woodpecker on that dead
pine over yender, I'll jist give We the his
tory O. oil Burnt Chestnut.
''It happened a good many years
ago, it did, sonny--so long ago that
thez very few in the country ez ever
heern on it, let alone 'memberin' ON it.
'Twa'n't long after stage coaches begun
to run up through this deestric', an
that's fur enough back, goodness knows.
Wall, anyhow, one fall an oil man th't
seemed to hev his share o. money got
out o. the stage over yender at the cross
ms tavern, on t'other side O. the bridge,
an staid thar. He give his name as
Simon Morer, an he took to lookin' bout
the deestric', an finally bought tract o.
land up long the Big Swamp run. He
had q piece of it cleared o. timber, an
then he built the biggest an suggest log
house th't were ever seen. The mex
summer half dozen wagon loads o. fur
nitur' an setch fixin's fer housekeepin'
ez hadn't never been seen nor heern on
in these parts came a-drivin'. up to OIL
Morer's log house, an followerin' them
came the OIL man, two young fellers ez
turned out to be his sons an an ALFRED
han some gal, not more'n, 10 year
OIL. 1t soon got missed around 'mongst
wat few folks tn was diggin' in them
days fer Twin in the deestric' th't this
gal were the oil mans niece. One O. the
boys were named Simon, arter his pap,
/ s'pose, an t'other were called James.
Simon were bout 90, an James not
more'n 81. The gals name were Pa
tience. James was tip top young chap
an fell right in with the ways o. the OIL
residenters, an got to be so poplar 'mong
'em th't want long fore they was call
in him Jim. Young Simon, though,
were nn overbearin' an disagreeable cuss.
He hated the woods an the people, and
didn't make no bones o. saying so. Con-
sequently, folks wa mt SO blame well sot
to'ards him ez they mowt ha' been. But
that hain't nuther here nor thar.
"You noticed, O. course, how things
will git circulated around. an anyone's
business be ev'ryone's business, even If
tn hain't more'n half q. dozen folks in a
deestric' twenty miles square. Wall,
that's the way it went bout the Morers.
an twa'n't long fore the hull woods
know'd th't OIL Morer KEEP good deal
o. money in his house, locked up in a
iron bound chist, an th't young Simon
an his brother Jim was both on 'em dead
in love with their cousin Patience, an
th't Patience had her heart sot on Jim,
an th't consistently tn were the OIL boy
- Aln g.,
family. The oil mans favorite son were
young Simon, an vile he owned up to
that, he wouldn't hev no force-but
business in the matter o. Patience, an
were tryin' all the time to get the boys
to patch up some sort o. compromise.
TIL were trouble, too, about the OIL
mans money cause Simon he claimed
th't most of it must be his'n by rights,
an Jim he lowed th't he'd be blamed if
tn were.
can SO things went on for q year an
better. One day Sam Bates, who were
happenin' to walk by the Mcrer place,
heerd big quarrel goin on mongst the
family. He heerd the OIL man say th't
he wouldn' Jtan' it no longer, An th't
he'd divide his money even 'twixt the
DOySs dil III L tilc SiTl ulust marry oliilOH'
Then Jim he swore by all that was blue
tint the girl shouldn't marry Simon, yet
es fer the money, the old man could do
jist ez he blamed pleased with it. OF
Simon toll young Simon to take the stage
fer Philadelphy mex mornin', an have
his lawyer draw up the papers, an to
bring en- back an he'd sign em, an
Simon went.
eth want much stir seen bout the
Morer place fer a week arter that. Then
folk thort it began to look mysterious,
an were jst on the pint o. 'yestigatin'
it, wen young Simon got back. 'Twan't
many hours fore the hull deestric'
know'd th't Simon had found the house
empty. The OIL man were gone, Jim
were gone. Patience were gone, an wuss
thin all, as Simon said, the OIL mans
money chist were gone. Simon ripped
round the neighborhood an swore th't
his brother Jim had murdered the OIL
man an hid his body som'ers in the
woods, an then stole the money an run
off with Patience. More'n th't, he swore